Who will be the starting Goalie for Vancouver next season?

These are my hopes for the up and coming season:
Keep the majority of the team intact. Drop the following players: whoever doesnâ€™t want to be there. Add the best available face-off leader from 2006 season. Hire the most prestigious coach with the best playoff record. Sign the most experienced in shape goalie that is available. Go from there.
There was only one goal this year that I thought the Canucks looked absolutely brilliant. I think it was Phoenix at the beginning of the year, and it was a tic tack toe play from the D up to Bertuzzi then over to Naslund and a one timer into the back of the net. We need way more shots next year.... If there are any players reading this then please trust your teammates, lots of one timers from the back end, and for fik sakes, stay out of the penalty box and play by the rules.....by the way it would help to put your head down and skate once in a while &#61514; Good Luck, Iâ€™ll still be watching ya.

I'm not sure experience is so much a factor in goaltending any more, there are bad experienced goaltenders and good inexperienced goaltenders, look who's gotten their teams this far in the playoffs...Ward, Miller, Bryzgalov, only Roloson is a true veteran and even he wasn't a "bona fide starter". I think more important than getting a star goaltender is getting a couple good goaltenders, allowing you to ride whichever one is hot, and not to end your season when one goes down to injury.

I think Auld/Noronen is fine as a 1A/1B tandem, I was originally excited about Oullet's potential, but I'm losing faith and would look to bring in another 3rd goaltender, and I'm hoping Ellis can be brought up soon (I think Schneider is the long-term plan, but he's got at least another year of college hockey, if we get a good vet as a 3rd goaltender, we can bring Ellis to the Moose to start his professional development).

A coach with a good playoff record would be ideal, but I think the standard is simply one that keeps his team accountable defensively and hard working. Jovo, Ohlund, Salo, Carney, Allen, Koltsov and Brown is a deep line-up, with Bourdon, Bieksa and Edler on the Moose is a deep defense, which was our problem this year.

The forwards is more difficult, Naslund has a no-trade clause, Sedins/Carter a given (if we can re-sign him, I think so), Kesler are the keepers. Linden if he can come back at half his current rate, bring back Chubarov if he wants.

My question marks are Morrison (I think he's good and is set to rebound now that he'll be healthy, but he is overpaid), Bertuzzi (is he a locker-room divider who's overpaid and underworking, or will he come back with something to prove under a new coach?), Cooke (ideal for the new NHL, hardworking, aggressive, fast with some offensive ability, I did think he was overpaid but if we roll 3/4 lines more equally he becomes worth it) and Ruutu (not bad, but if we can get something better by trading one of the question marks, I'm looking for an upgrade).

This team has a lot of holes - especially with Jovanovski leaves for Florida. Goaltending is average, defense is weak (Ohlund is not a #1 option, as much as I hate to admit), and forwards are a very unmotivated group.

I think with a new coach in place for next year everyone will be on an equal playing field and everyone will have to prove themselves.

Cloutier has been the number one but is coming off another injury ... not sure they will want to put all the eggs in his basket another year as he really can't seem to play more than 50 or 55 games a season - also unproven in playoffs.

Auld ... still young and at times plays well. Seems to be getting better at handling full time duty however he also seems to "wet the bed" (Thanks Rikster) in times of pressure.

Noronen reportedly has the talent but also carries an unknown factor. He hasn't really had any chance to get a bunch of games under his belt to prove his worth (if any) as Crow went with Auld last season.

Tough call as to who will be the #1 but I am going to go out on a limb here ... I'll say that by Christmas/Januaryish, Noronen will have worked his way into the #1 spot.

With a new coach I think the Canucks will keep Cloutier and Auld to start the season. With the shortage of quailty goaltenders in the NHL- everyone seems to be seeking depth in goal, my prediction is if Cloutier isn't dealt during the draft, then the Canucks will hold on to all 3 well into the season.

Once a few teams have goaltending problems- we can trade either Auld or Cloutier for hopefully a king's ransom- a la Roloson....then we'll see Noronen become the backup.

Except that Noronen has made noise that he hated a three-goaltender rotation in Buffalo so much that if he faced the same thing again he might just go back to Europe. I think Cloutier's too pricey at $2.5 mil to keep around for depth purposes when both Noronen or Auld could do a decent job and both have unexplored upsides.

As I have said before, I think the tandem will be Cloutier/Noronen in a 1A/1B role, with Cloutier getting 45-50 and Noronen playing the remainder. Grizz, I tend to agree that Noronen could very likely work his way into the #1 spot, although Cloutier is a competitor he will push Noronen every game he starts! A good thing!

Victoriafan wrote:As I have said before, I think the tandem will be Cloutier/Noronen in a 1A/1B role, with Cloutier getting 45-50 and Noronen playing the remainder. Grizz, I tend to agree that Noronen could very likely work his way into the #1 spot, although Cloutier is a competitor he will push Noronen every game he starts! A good thing!

... and thats great that Cloutier will push Noronen ... its all around good for the club ...

... the one main reason why I think I chose Noronen to eventually oust Cloutier is simply because Cloutier cannot seem to play more than 50-55 games a year ... for whatever reason he physically can't handle the load of a #1 goalie as he comes down with a major injury or setback every year ... his stats are of course another issue.

... as far as Auld goes ... i guess I don't have a real reason why he won't challenge for #1... I did push for him at the beginning of the year ahead of Cloutier (for the above reasons) but the more he played I just seemed to lose confidence in him and his ability to perform consistently under pressure. That may be due to the fact he is relatively young and he needs more seasoning but my gut is telling me he is just going to be average at best and that Noronen will offer a little more.

Maybe I'm wrong we'll see ... hopefully all of them realize that the #1 spot is somewhat up for grabs ... especially with a new coach looking for a favorite ... it should push them all to their max to see what they can offer.